Beneficial features of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria for improving plant growth and health in challenging conditions: A methodical review

• Published in: The Science of the total environment 2020-11, Vol.743, p.140682-140682, Article 140682
• Main Authors: Oleńska, Ewa, Małek, Wanda, Wójcik, Małgorzata, Swiecicka, Izabela, Thijs, Sofie, Vangronsveld, Jaco
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bacterial volatile compounds (BVCs); Induced systemic resistance (ISR); Nutrients; Phytohormones; Rhizobacteria; Siderophores
• ISSN: 0048-9697; 1879-1026
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140682

New eco-friendly approaches are required to improve plant biomass production. Beneficial plant growth-promoting (PGP) bacteria may be exploited as excellent and efficient biotechnological tools to improve plant growth in various – including stressful – environments. We present an overview of bacterial mechanisms which contribute to plant health, growth, and development. Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) can interact with plants directly by increasing the availability of essential nutrients (e.g. nitrogen, phosphorus, iron), production and regulation of compounds involved in plant growth (e.g. phytohormones), and stress hormonal status (e.g. ethylene levels by ACC-deaminase). They can also indirectly affect plants by protecting them against diseases via competition with pathogens for highly limited nutrients, biocontrol of pathogens through production of aseptic-activity compounds, synthesis of fungal cell wall lysing enzymes, and induction of systemic responses in host plants. The potential of PGPR to facilitate plant growth is of fundamental importance, especially in case of abiotic stress, where bacteria can support plant fitness, stress tolerance, and/or even assist in remediation of pollutants. Providing additional evidence and better understanding of bacterial traits underlying plant growth-promotion can inspire and stir up the development of innovative solutions exploiting PGPR in times of highly variable environmental and climatological conditions. [Display omitted] •Bacteria facilitate plant growth under stressful environmental conditions.•Direct and indirect mechanisms are involved in improvement of plant growth and development.•Plant-growth promoting rhizobacteria and host-plant interaction under stress•Agriculture and phytoremediation efficiency may be significantly improved by using plant-growth promoting bacteria.